A train consist can include one or more locomotives (or other powered rail vehicles) and one or more cars. A consist may include a lead locomotive and one or more trail locomotives. The locomotives may be operated with idle reduction strategies, such as using automatic engine shutdown and restart operations, sometimes referred to as automatic engine start/stop (AESS) operations. The AESS operations are designed to reduce the amount of time a locomotive engine is kept idling by shutting down the engine when parameters indicate that stopping the engine is safe and restarting the engine when the parameters indicate otherwise. Reducing the amount of time a locomotive engine is kept idling cuts emissions, reduces noise, and saves fuel to increase the efficiency of the vehicle system.
Newer locomotives may include integrated electronic air brake systems in communication with an integrated function computer (IFC). The integrated electronic braking system is capable of determining and relaying an operational status of the locomotive (e.g., status for distributed power operations, and/or positional status), as set by an operator through the IFC, to a locomotive controller. The locomotive controller adjusts locomotive engine operations, such as locomotive AESS operations, based on the relayed operational status of the locomotive. Older locomotives lacking such integrated electronic braking systems, however, are unable to determine and relay the operational status of a locomotive automatically to a locomotive controller. Consequently, the increased efficiency and other benefits of AESS operations that are based on the operational status of the locomotive may not be available to older locomotives that lack integrated electronic air brake systems.